The Machine (2023 film)
| The Machine | |
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Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Peter Atencio |
| Screenplay by |
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| Based on | The comedy of Bert Kreischer |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Eigil Bryld |
| Edited by | Eleanor Infante |
| Music by | Joseph Trapanese |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Screen Gems (through Sony Pictures Releasing) |
Release date |
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Running time | 112 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $20 million |
| Box office | $10.7 million |
The Machine is a 2023 American action comedy film directed by Peter Atencio, inspired by the 2016 stand-up routine of the same name created by Bert Kreischer. The film stars Kreischer as a fictionalized version of himself, with Mark Hamill, Jimmy Tatro, Iva Babić, Stephanie Kurtzuba and Jessica Gabor.
Stand-up comedian Bert's past catches up with him 20 years later when he and his father are kidnapped by someone Bert wronged while drunk on a college semester abroad in Russia.
Following its viral success, Legendary Entertainment acquired the rights to adapt Kreischer's stand-up routine into a feature film in September 2018. Most of the lead cast members were hired from April to June 2021. Filming began in Serbia in April 2021 through Balkanic Media.
The Machine was released in the United States by Sony Pictures Releasing under its Screen Gems label on May 26, 2023. It received mostly negative reviews from critics.